Why We Tolerate Boys
by KayDee-DesignerExtraordinare
Summary: Draco and Hermione are at a party, but why is Draco… odd? Written for the Twin Exchange Monthly Challenge: September


**What started as six pages of pure dialogue ended as this: The Twin Exchange Monthly Challenge: September Edition! Please read, review, and vote!**

**Prompt- Floo, Hotel, Movie**

**Ship- Dramione, FTW**

**Quote- "You wouldn't dare," "Take me; I'm yours," and "A little to the left."**

**Theme- Ginny's B-Day**

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><p><strong>As of 922, I am officially entered in the poll, so please vote!  
><strong>

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><p><strong>Why We Tolerate Boys<br>**

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><p><strong><em>August 11, 2002<em>**

"No."

"Please?"

"No!"

"Please, Draco?"

"Absolutely not!"

"Fine."

"Thank you."

"I guess I'll just spend the evening talking to Ron. May be he can… refresh my memory on what happened, with Room of Requirement."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Oh, but I would."

"What time is the party?"

"Seven. So we have to be there at five to set up."

"Set up? Nobody said anything about setting up!"

"That's because you weren't going."

"I hate you."

"And I love you."

**~oOo~**

"Ugh, they really need to sweep the floo once in a while," Hermione spluttered, brushing soot from her coat.

"Hermione! You came! And… you brought Draco." Harry's smile slipped a tad, seeing his friend and the blonde wrapped arm in arm.

"Harry, you're supposed to be tolerant of our relationship."

"Yeah, Potter. Bugger off." Even with the rudeness, the tone was joking. Everyone knew that Harry and Draco got along quite well.

"Watch it Malfoy. You're in my house now."

"Actually, I'm in a hotel."

"Yes, well, I'm watching Teddy for Tonks today. I won't have him exposed to that sort of language!"

"Oi, you three!" Fred shouted, walking into the main hall. "Look at the time! If the ballroom isn't all out when Mum gets here, she'll chop my ear off. And then you really won't be able to tell George and I apart."

"Fine. Potter, what do we need to do first?"

**~oOo~**

"How about now?"

"A little to the left."

"Now?"

"Little more."

"Now?"

"Just a touch more to the left."

"Bloody hell, woman! I can't go any lefter!"

"Oh. Sorry Draco; I meant my left."

"…"

"What was that?"

"Nothing, darling. Just that I love you."

"Uh huh."

Cough. "Whipped." Cough.

Cough. "Like you're any better." Cough.

**~oOo~**

"Hurry up guys! Everyone arrives in an hour, I'm not dressed yet, and George isn't back with the cake!"

"Hermione, just calm down. Deep breath. Think of the unicorns."

Hermione slowly turned, glaring irately and speaking through clenched teeth. "Draco, I don't want to think about any bloody unicorns. I just want Ginny's party to be perfect."

"And it won't be perfect if her best friend has a heart attack before it's even kicked off."

"Go… hang up the banner."

"Anything for you, dear."

**~oOo~**

The party in full swing, Ginny raced over to her best friend. "Oh, Hermione! The party is wonderful! I absolutely love it!"

"Thanks, Gin. Now, get back to your boyfriend."

"All right. Have fun with Draco!"

Speaking of the devil, he sidled up next to her, whispering in her ear. "Oh, we're going to have fun?"

Feeling the heat rising, she shook her head. "Shut up Draco."

"Just remember, the offer still stands."

"Hmm, where exactly did I see Ron?"

"All right, all right. I'll behave."

"Thank you."

They stood there for a moment, before finding another aim of annoyance. "Between you and me, Potter looks a bit nervous."

And indeed he did. Fiddling with his pocket and glancing about, he began to pace in another corner.

"Oh, he's going to propose on her birthday! That's so romantic!"

"And so public. What if he was shot down?"

"This is Harry and Ginny we're talking about."

He sniggered. "Right."

"Quiet! He's coming to talk!"

Standing on the stage and casting Sonorous, it took little time to catch attention.

"Um, as you all know, today is Ginny's birthday. You see, I've been dating Ginny for oh, going on five years now. And, there's this thing you must know about Ginny: I love her. She's… honestly, my reason for living. I cannot stand to even think about living my life without her. So, Ginny, could you come up here please?"

"Sure." Somehow, she was completely oblivious to what was planned. She made her way to the stage and stood next to her boyfriend.

"Ginny, like I said, I love you. My life wouldn't be complete without you; and you're the only person who could ever make me get up here and say this."

He got down on one knee and pulled out the box.

"Ginny Weasley, will you marry me?"

"Well I thought you'd never ask."

**~oOo~**

"Hey, Hermione! So good to see you!" Spotting her alone and downing his third glass of Firewhiskey, Ron lumbered his way over to her.

"Um, you too Ron." She glanced about looking for Draco. He was taking forever on that water closet retreat of his.

"I see you tossed the ferret out."

"Oh, he's just-"

"I knew it would only be a matter of time before you came back to me."

"Excuse me?" Hermione hadn't realized that Ron was drunk, or that he still carried feelings for her.

"You know, you really had me going there for a month or two. But then I realized, it was an act. You were trying to make me jealous. Just like how I did with Lavender."

"Ronald!"

"Come here."

He wrapped his arms around her, trying to kiss her. The music was too loud for anyone to notice anything, aside from a very aggravated Ginny Weasley, who made her way over to them.

"Let go of me!"

"I always knew you were mine."

"You seem to be mistaken, Weasley. She's mine." Turning around and letting go of Hermione, Ron was punched and knocked over by a furiously protective Draco.

"Ahem?" Even within the shock, fear, and anger, Hermione still stood her feminist ground.

"Except in the sense of property. In that case, she's no one's."

Ginny, having watched the ordeal, whispered in Hermione's ear, as such gossipy girls often do.

"You've trained him so well."

"I know."

Draco, turning to his girlfriend, held out his hand. "What do you say about me taking you somewhere?"

"Um…" She glanced at Ginny, silently asking permission to leave.

"Go!"

Smiling, she accepted the offered hand. "Take me; I am, as you so eloquently stated, yours."

**~oOo~**

"Where are we?"

"You don't recognize this place?"

"Well, seeing as I've never been on the rooftop of any building, no!"

"Then come in here."

She followed him through the doorway. Glancing around, she realized she was on an old show house catwalk, high above the stage.

"Don't worry; I've got you."

"Draco, are we…? No. We are! We are, aren't we?"

"At the movie theatre that held occasion to our first date? Why yes; yes we are."

"What are we doing here?"

"Besides not really liking Weaslette, there's another reason I didn't want to go to the party."

"What?" He sat down, and helped her next to him. Staring out at the empty seats, he chose his words carefully.

"I was planning something. I was so sure of everything that would happen; I practically wrote a script, in case you didn't go along with it. And then the party came up.

"I didn't like it, yet you were able to persuade me. I figured I could pull it there. And you talked about Potter, about how much nerve it took for him to stand up in front of his family and friends to propose to his girlfriend; a girl he didn't even realize would've said yes if he proposed to her next to a bin on his way to a Quiditch match!

"I couldn't do that. I'm not a Gryffindor!"

"Draco-"

"Hermione, I was born Slytherin. And we Slytherin's are sneaky, and deceiving, and precise strategists. We may pretend we're fearless, but when it comes down to it, we're a bunch of cowards."

"Draco-" She began to worry, thinking his sanity was fleeing.

"Hermione, I was planning on it being in front of all those people who loved and cared about you; complete strangers to me! And I still couldn't do it."

"Draco! What the hell are you talking about?"

"You! You're... bloody hell, you're everything to me. I know I've only really known you for five years, and we've only been dating for two, but you are truly my one and only. And I could go on about soul mates, maybe mention that I'm 1/16 Veela, but it all comes back to the same thing: I love you."

"Draco…" She hoped to respond, but he was on a roll.

"Hermione Granger, will you end my anguish, and be my wife?"

Many thoughts (and indeed, many answers,) raced through her mind, but only one was spoken aloud.

"Absolutely."

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><p><strong>The End! <strong>

**I was going to add more, have it end as a dream, but I was about to miss the deadline. Review, and vote for me on the Twin Exchange Profile.**

**xXKodyXx**


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